Luxury Cars: Not So Luxurious When It Comes To Repairs

If you’ve ever considered buying a late-model German luxury car, make sure you do your homework first. Recently we had the opportunity to see what happens when a 2000 Audi A6 has a power steering failure…

Our little Audi developed a power steering leak at one of the seals. This type of repair can be pretty easy in most cars, but our Audi is a little different. In order to replace or rebuild the power steering rack the sub-frame needs to be lowered to gain access to the rack. This operation is listed as a 12-hour repair in the automotive labor repair manuals. In most shops, the labor rate is about $100.00 per hour (as of Sept. 07) and that means the labor alone on this repair is about $1,200.00. But that’s just the start.

Removing the rack is only the first step in the repair process. Once the Audi power steering rack has been removed, we still need to fix the leak. This can be accomplished in one of two ways: 1) Replace the rack or 2) Rebuild. Amazingly, the cost of both of these options is nearly the same – about $1,000.00. So, most people opt to replace the rack. Now we’re up to $2,200 to fix a leaky steering rack, but we’re not done yet.

The Audi’s steering rack uses a very special power steering fluid called Pentosin CHF 11S. This is the only fluid that can be used in the rack, and it runs about $20.00. Per quart. The good news is that the system only takes 19 quarts. And the hits just keep on comin’.

So let’s recap: We’ve purchased a $1,000.00 power steering rack, $1,200.00 of labor, $380.00 of power steering fluid and a 10% shop supplies fee of $258.00. That’s a grand total of $2,838.00 (plus tax). Sounds a little scary I know, but our Audi is damn-near useless without power steering…

What’s the bottom line? While an Audi A6, BMW M5 or Mercedes Benz C class all sound like great ways to show the world you have arrived, they might empty your bank account. If a power steering rack repair can be this expensive and complicated, just imagine what an air conditioning repair will cost! Our advice, avoid used luxury vehicles whenever possible. With that being said please understand we don’t dislike German luxury vehicles. The German manufactures have excellent warranties on their new vehicles. Most new German vehicles cover all maintenance and repairs for the first four years or so. This type of coverage can give you real piece of mind — but the moment that the warranty expires, watch out! Things can get pretty expensive in a hurry.